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Shuckle/GSC
Shuckle is found through Rock Smash on Route 40 and Cianwood City, as well as the Burned Tower and Dark Cave. A gift Shuckle is available in Cianwood City. Even just putting a Shuckle on the team is a test of patience, and raising it even more so: its only real fighting option before the postgame consists of Wrap stalling its way to victory against any and all foes, a technique that requires time and, more often than not, a healing item or two. Patience challenge aside, however, it is more than capable of taking just about any one hit, and a good switch-in against any physical hitter, particularly after learning Curse. Its main misfortune in battle is the commonness of Water-types, which it is often unable to handle. Overall, Shuckle is not a Pokémon suited for beginners, but if trained by a player who knows the ins and outs of the game, it can turn out quite useful. Important Matchups Johto * Rival (Burned Tower): Shuckle is not good against Haunter, which can Curse-trap and be damaged only with Dig, a two-turn move which makes Curse damage stack further. It can win over Zubat easily with patience, though the matchup against Magnemite is likely at loss, due to Shuckle's low HP and Magnemite's SonicBoom. Shuckle is also unlikely to win against Croconaw, which knows Water Gun; Bayleef is also tough with PoisonPowder and the high critical hit rate of Razor Leaf, though possible to beat. Quilava is the easiest, its Ember is the weakest of all of the starters' STAB moves. Wrap is advised against all but Haunter, which is immune to it. * Gym #4 - Morty (Ecruteak City, Ghost-type): Shuckle can beat Gastly with Dig, averaging at a 2-3HKO; the level 21 Haunter is 3-4HKOed, and can be attempted since it knows Curse but not Mean Look, though Night Shade is a threat to be considered. The other Haunter should be avoided, as it can easily Spite Shuckle out of Dig PP; Gengar takes too long to beat, and should just be handled by another Pokémon. * Eusine (Cianwood City, Crystal only): Shuckle's Wrap and Return combined win relatively easily against Drowzee, while Dig can net a modest 4HKO against Haunter. Electrode can be faced only if Shuckle knows Dig, since the move breaks the Rollout stack and allows Shuckle to win. * Gym #5 - Chuck (Cianwood City, Fighting-type): Shuckle can Wrap-stall Primeape until it goes down, using Return to speed up the process. Poliwrath's Surf, however, almost hits the 2HKO range, making Wrap not viable. * Gym #6 - Jasmine (Olivine City, Steel-type): Shuckle is not suited to fight against Jasmine's Pokémon. The two Magnemite know SonicBoom, which would cut its base HP far too quickly, and Steelix has STAB super effective Iron Tail to hit with. Shuckle's Wrap stall would take too long to defeat them. * Rocket Executive battle #1 (Team Rocket HQ): Shuckle can stall Zubat and Raticate without a problem, thanks to Wrap and the low damage output of their moves. Zubat does know Confuse Ray, but with Shuckle's disproportionate Defense compared to its non-existent Attack, even confusion damage will be minimal. Koffing may pose a bigger issue, since its Smog and Sludge moves are highly likely to poison Shuckle. * Rocket Executive battle #2 (Team Rocket HQ): Arbok, Gloom and Murkrow are all easily Wrap-stalled into oblivion. Only Arbok may be slightly more difficult, since Poison Sting has a chance of poisoning; the other two cannot inflict any sort of status that deals constant damage. * Gym #7 - Pryce (Mahogany Town, Ice-type): Seel and Dewgong only have Ice and Normal moves, but Shuckle cannot stall them to death with Wrap, because they know Rest. Piloswine, instead, nets a modest 4-5HKO even with Blizzard, a low PP move, so it can be defeated with Wrap. * Rocket Executive battle #3 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): All of the Koffing can be weakened with a combination of Wrap, and either Return or Dig. Weezing can be stalled, as well, though Shuckle should be kept steadily above 40% health or so, as its Explosion can otherwise off it. * Rival (Goldenrod Underground): Golbat and Sneasel are defeated by the standard combination of Wrap and Return; Dig should be used against Magnemite and Haunter, instead. Quilava is also stalled relatively easily, while Meganium may pose problems with PoisonPowder and Reflect, and Feraligatr's Water Gun makes it difficult for Shuckle to stay healthy throughout the fight. * Rocket Executive battle #4 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Arbok, like Shuckle, knows Wrap; Shuckle can win with the support of either Dig or Return, though. Vileplume and Murkrow are easier to take down; Vileplume's Acid may lower Shuckle's Defense in the process, but if Shuckle still knows Withdraw, it can compensate easily for the Defense drops. * Rocket Executive battle #5 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): All three of the Executive's Pokémon can be taken down with Wrap and Dig. Dig specifically helps against them a lot, since they all have a Ground weakness. * Suicune (Bell Tower, Crystal only): Shuckle cannot win against Suicune; BubbleBeam 3HKOs it naturally, and can even 2HKO after Rain Dance is used. * Gym #8 - Clair (Blackthorn City, Dragon-type): Shuckle cannot Wrap-stall the first Dragonair nor Kingdra, since both of them know Surf. The other two Dragonair are fair game, as they take several turns to down Shuckle with DragonBreath; having Return helps with this task. * Rival (Victory Road): Sneasel, Golbat and Kadabra may be defeated by Wrap stall, with a helping of Return. Dig can 3HKO Magneton, but its SonicBoom will otherwise overthrow Shuckle, due to its low HP. Haunter's Mean Look, Curse and Confuse Ray make even an attempt at Dig dangerous; likewise, the starter Pokémon are strong enough to make Wrap stall difficult for Shuckle, though Typhlosion is the most manageable with some healing. * Elite Four Will (Indigo Plateau, Psychic-type): The two Xatu can be Wrap-stalled with the aid of Return, and so can Jynx and Slowbro; Slowbro lacks Water moves and, despite having Curse, its only physical move is Body Slam, which is still weaker than Psychic against Shuckle even at +6 in Attack. Exeggutor may be beaten with a combination of Wrap and Sludge Bomb with the help of poisoning, but it will be difficult, as it knows Leech Seed. * Elite Four Koga (Indigo Plateau, Poison-type): Ariados and Forretress are the only Pokémon that can be Wrap-stalled safely, and Ariados knows Spider Web and Baton Pass, which can become dangerous if the recipient Pokémon is one of Muk, Venomoth or Crobat. All three of them know Toxic and, with the exception of Venomoth, evasion-boosting moves. Shuckle may only be able to defeat them with frequent healing and an X Accuracy, and may still require its Wrap PP be restored along the way. * Elite Four Bruno (Indigo Plateau, Fighting-type): All of Bruno's Pokémon except Machamp can be beaten with Wrap stall. Onix is better off left to a teammate if possible, since it does know Rock Slide, even if the move is relatively weak due to its low Attack; Machamp's Rock Slide is more threatening, and can 4HKO Shuckle. * Elite Four Karen (Indigo Plateau, Dark-type): Wrap stall works against Umbreon, Vileplume and Murkrow; since Umbreon knows Confuse Ray and Sand-Attack, it is recommended to open the fight with an X Accuracy and have Shuckle hold a Bitter Berry. Houndoom can be defeated with Earthquake, an average 3-4HKO, better than its Flamethrower. Gengar should be left alone unless paralysed; although Earthquake is good against it, its Destiny Bond can kill any Pokémon that goes second. * Champion Lance (Indigo Plateau, Flying-type): Gyarados' Surf and Aerodactyl's AncientPower make Wrap-stalling impossible against them. Instead, it can be accomplished against Charizard and the three Dragonite, though not without likely healing in between. Kanto From this point onwards, you can fight the gyms in any order, though you will need to retrieve the Machine Parts from the Cerulean City gym before you have access to the earlier portion of Kanto. Feel free to anticipate or postpone any battles as needed. * Gym #9 - Brock (Pewter City, Rock-type): Shuckle is not in luck against Graveler, whose Defense Curl and Rollout combo prevents Curse setups. It may set up Curse only against Rhyhorn, whose Earthquake is relatively weak, or at most Onix, since Curse lessens the damage taken by Rock Slide unless too many consecutive flinches occur. If one of the fossil Pokémon is switched in instead, Shuckle will not get to do much at all: they both have Surf, which is too strong to set up against. * Rival (Mt. Moon, optional): Shuckle can win this fight through a Curse setup, but must not resort to it against Sneasel, which knows Screech; it is optimal to use Curse only once against Sneasel, which allows Shuckle to have high 3HKO chances with Return. It can then reach +6 Curses against any Pokémon except Gengar, which would trap and beat Shuckle with Mean Look and Curse. At +6, Shuckle's Return 2HKOs Golbat and Alakazam and 3HKOs Feraligatr; Magneton, Gengar and Typhlosion are OHKOed by Earthquake, while Meganium can be 2HKOed with Sludge Bomb or 3HKOed with Return. * Gym #10 - Misty (Cerulean City, Water-type): No. All of Misty's Pokémon have Surf, which makes it impossible for Shuckle to Wrap stall or set up. * Gym #11 - Lt. Surge (Vermilion City, Electric-type): Raichu's relatively weak Thunder permits Shuckle to set up Curse at will. After reaching +5 in Attack, all of the enemy Pokémon are OHKOed by Earthquake. * Gym #12 - Erika (Celadon City, Grass-type): Tangela allows Shuckle to set up Curse easily. If Shuckle knows Sludge Bomb, a +3 is sufficient to 2HKO Erika's entire team except Victreebel, which can however be 3HKOed with Return; if Shuckle only knows Return, instead, it can 2HKO all four Pokémon only at +6, with Tangela and Bellossom having somewhat low 3HKO chances. At any rate, none of Erika's Pokémon represent a threat for Shuckle, even if it does need the extra turns to KO them. * Gym #13 - Janine (Fuchsia City, Poison-type): Although Crobat's Wing Attack is weak, Shuckle should aim to beat it as soon as possible with Return (and possibly Wrap), since its Screech makes Curse setups impossible. Any other member of Janine's team can be set up against, providing that Shuckle can be healed from Toxic poisoning along the way. At +6, all of Janine's Pokémon are OHKOed by Earthquake except Venomoth, which can survive a hit, but cannot damage Shuckle much in turn. * Gym #14 - Sabrina (Saffron City, Psychic-type): It is recommended to have an X Accuracy for this battle. Shuckle can win relatively easily by setting up Curse all the way to +6, which guarantees 2HKOs all across the board, or 3HKOs if one of Sabrina's Pokémon uses Reflect. However, Espeon knows Sand-Attack. Although Psychic may cause Special Defense drops, Sabrina's Pokémon can only reach the 2HKO range at -2 or lower, which is unlikely to happen before Shuckle itself is done setting up. * Gym #15 - Blaine (Seafoam Islands, Fire-type): Magcargo's Flamethrower is weak enough for Shuckle to set up Curses and heal occasionally, until +3 or higher is reached. At +3, Shuckle can OHKO Magcargo with Earthquake and 2HKO Magmar and Rapidash, though this requires additional healing along the way, since Shuckle's slowness makes the damage pile up, particularly if the enemy uses Sunny Day; at +6, Magmar is also OHKOed, and there are also OHKO chances against Rapidash. * Gym #16 - Blue (Viridian City): Pidgeot would be great to set up against, but it knows Whirlwind and can easily foil Shuckle's attempts at using Curse. Alakazam is also less than ideal; its Psychic is a mere 4HKO, but Disable can get in the way of Curse and Reflect lessens Shuckle's damage dealt. With enough patience and some healing, however, Shuckle can pull off a +6 against Alakazam; it should also be noted that, except for Arcanine, Alakazam is the only likely setup material Shuckle may have on Blue's team. In any case, even a +6 will only warrant a 2HKO against Alakazam (with Return), Arcanine and Rhydon (with Earthquake). Exeggutor and Gyarados are at best 3HKOed, with Sludge Bomb and Return respectively, and Shuckle cannot win against Gyarados at all unless more healing happens, as its Surf 3HKOs Shuckle faster than Return can do against it. * Rival (Indigo Plateau, optional): Sneasel may be 3HKOed by Return only upwards of two Curses, and Shuckle may not be allowed to use them, if Sneasel goes for Screech; it is advised to not have Shuckle stay on the battlefield in negative Defense modifiers. The best setup material for Shuckle is Alakazam or, if healing is unrestricted, Crobat; Crobat does, however, know Toxic and Confuse Ray, which will increase the setup turns required. Meganium and Typhlosion are also good to set up against, but not Feraligatr, which would beat Shuckle in at most three turns and must not be fought even at +6 in Attack, as Shuckle would not win. After a full setup, Shuckle can 3HKO Crobat with Return, OHKO Magneton and Gengar with Earthquake, 2HKO Alakazam with Return or 3HKO if it uses Reflect, and 2HKO Meganium or Typhlosion with Sludge Bomb or Earthquake, respectively. * Red (Mt. Silver): Although Pikachu is largely harmless, it cannot be used to set up Curse, due to its Charm; Shuckle should simply 2-3HKO it with Earthquake. Espeon is better of stalled with Wrap, since its Psychic can 4-5HKO and Reflect greatly lessens Shuckle's damage output. Snorlax is ideal to set up against, having Body Slam as its strongest move, which Shuckle resists; hitting +6 Curses is easy against Snorlax, and it can then be 3HKOed with Return. Venusaur, Blastoise and Charizard are all theoretically 3HKOed after a full setup too, but only Charizard is relatively easy to defeat; Venusaur can resort to Sunny Day and Synthesis to heal, while Blastoise is faster and knows Surf, which 3HKOs before Shuckle can do the same. Moves Shuckle's initial moveset is Constrict, Withdraw, Wrap and Encore. It does not learn any other, stronger damaging moves upon levelling up: its natural learnset only includes Safeguard at level 23, then the dangerous Bide at level 28, and the fairly useless Rest at level 37 unless a limited healing run is ongoing. Due to its very low base stats, it is difficult to have Shuckle deal much damage at all, even with strong moves like Earthquake, Sludge Bomb and Return. Teaching Return is a good option, since it comes free and has good base power, but Shuckle will still be underpowered even with it; only during the postgame this can be fixed, as Curse becomes available, and with Shuckle's great defensive stats even its Attack can become something. This implies slow, patient sweeps, but Shuckle is not a Pokémon for the faint of heart, especially in Johto; even its best stall option, Toxic, is exclusive to the postgame. Aside from Wrap and Bide, all that Shuckle gets to do damage until after Lance is Sandstorm, which does not even boost its Special Defense in this generation. Recommended moveset: ''Johto: Wrap, Bide, Sandstorm, Return / Sludge Bomb / Earthquake'' ''Kanto (setup): Curse, Return, Earthquake, Sludge Bomb'' ''Kanto (stall): Wrap, Toxic, Sandstorm, Return / Sludge Bomb / Earthquake'' Recommended Teammates * Grass-types: Though Grass-types have several problems in Johto in general, they are excellent companions for Shuckle, as they provide a good switch-in against Rock- and Water-types; the latter in particular are very common, and a resistance to Water paired with super effective STAB can go a long way. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Meganium, Bellossom, Sunflora, Exeggutor (Crystal only) * Fighting-types: The best way to counter the Steel-types Shuckle hates is with Fighting-types; unlike Fire- and Ground-types, the other two Steel arch-enemies, Fighting-types do not share any weaknesses with Shuckle. Good Fighting moves are harder to come by, but Fighting-types can often learn coverage that is useful against Steel even without their STAB. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Poliwrath (Crystal only), Heracross, Primeape, Machamp, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Hitmontop * Fast hitters: Shuckle is outsped by literally everything, and having Curse as its main setup move makes that even worse. Fast threats should be dispatched by even faster teammates, especially fast special sweepers, which Shuckle is not particularly strong against. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Gengar, Alakazam, Tauros, Electabuzz, Starmie, Jolteon (Crystal only), Espeon Other Shuckle's stats * How good is Shuckle in a Nuzlocke? Fairly good and fun to use, but only for those who have patience. Shuckle has no option but Wrap stall its way to victory until the arrival in Kanto, and depending on the enemy faced, it may or may not need healing to pull it off. It can be an asset, but only in good hands; it should not be used by beginners. * Weaknesses: Rock, Steel, Water * Resistances: Normal, Poison * Immunities: None * Neutralities: Fighting, Flying, Ground, Bug, Ghost, Fire, Grass, Electric, Psychic, Ice, Dragon, Dark Category:Gold/Silver/Crystal Category:List of Evolutionary Lines with Completed Analyses